Band:	Signum Regis
Album:	Chapter IV: The Reckoning
Style:	Power metal, Progressive metal
Release date:	November 20, 2015
A review by:	Belegûr

01. Lost And Found
02. The Secret Of The Sea
03. The Voice In The Wilderness
04. Prophet Of Doom
05. The Magi
06. Quitters Never Win
07. Tempter Of Evil
08. When Freedom Fails
09. The Kingdom Of Heaven
10. Bells Are Tolling

The European power metal scene is chock-full of average bands. I've reviewed some myself and Signum Regis did seem like another one after I listened to Chapter IV: The Reckoning for the first time. However, after each subsequent listen, I started to appreciate it a lot more. No this isn't top tier power metal and it makes the same mistakes that so many other forgettable acts in the genre make, but it does get a lot right.

The Slovakians play power metal with some progressive touches. The lyrics are heavily Christian based and they aren't very subtle about it. With some lyrics like "Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world", it's not hard to pick up on the main themes of the album. It's very similar to bands like Golden Resurrection and Divinfire. Of course It's certainly not rare for power metal to lack subtlety in the lyrics department. Perhaps wanting some Christian lyrics in the vein as Saviour Machine may be too much to ask for. I'm a fan of any fantasy lyrics though, even Christian ones.

Chapter IV: The Reckoning is certainly consistent though and while I don't consider most of the tracks to be absolutely amazing, absolutely none of the tracks are bad either. It's an easy album to listen to and just about every chorus is catchy and they do really well with the likes of "The Secret Of The Sea" and "Prophet Of Doom", both being infectious to the point where I was putting them on repeat. The former probably being my favourite on the album, starting with what I can only describe as a riff more suited to a groove metal band before the keyboards make an appearance and then the aforementioned catchy chorus.

Unfortunately the vocals rarely stand out and a good vocalist tends to be required for most power metal bands to stand out in the crowd. Vocalist Mayo Petranin reminded me of Russell Allen of Symphony X, but with none of the power. He has his moments and shines through on the ballad "Bells Are Tolling" and on many of the choruses. It's just not often enough. The member that caught my attention was the guitarist. There's a surprising depth to the solos, with technical flourishes that never approach masturbatory shred. "The Voice In The Wilderness" opens with what I can only describe as an ode to Pantera's "Cowboys From Hell". This stops the album becoming mundane; The interesting switches between heavy crunchy guitar riffs, European power metal keyboard passages and great guitar solos.

Chapter IV: The Reckoning is a good album, given an extra bit of quality with some great guitar work and memorable choruses. The vocals may be pretty forgettable, but it's a well-made album with more than decent production values and power metal fans who enjoy a bit of prog work should definitely give it some attention.